Eastern Orthodoxy – an evangelical appraisal

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I found a thoughtful evangelical appraisal of Eastern Orthodoxy in a rather unexpected source: Answers in Genesis.  Abating Trent Hyatt’s advocacy of a more literal interpretation of the early chapters of Genesis than I can cope with, the discussion was, as far as I could tell, fair and courteous.

What follows is loosely based on that article.

1. Authority.  The Orthodox regard the Bible as the inspired Word of God.  Like the Roman Catholics, they recognise a more extensive canon compared with Protestants.…

Icons

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I want to try to understand something of the nature and significance of icons in Eastern Orthodoxy.

A. I begin this discussion with some key facts based on the relevant entry in the Dictionary of the Christian Church (F.L. Cross & E.A. Livingstone, eds. 3rd Edition, 1997)

  1. Icons are pictures, representing the Lord, the Virgin Mary, or another saint, which have been used and venerated in the Eastern Church since around the 5th century.
  2. They ‘venerated’ (not worshipped), with all the marks of such veneration common in the East – kisses, prostrations, incense, etc.
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Genesis 18 – Abraham’s three visitors

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Gen 18:1 The LORD appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent during the hottest time of the day. 18:2 Abraham looked up and saw three men standing across from him. When he saw them he ran from the entrance of the tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.

Who were these ‘three men’?

Some writers, both ancient and modern, have seen the three persons of the Trinity here.…

Orthodoxy on the fall, depravity and free will

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The Orthodox view is expressed in this note in The Orthodox Study Bible:

‘Mankind’s strong propensity to commit sin reveals that in the Fall, the image of God in man (Gn 1:26, 27) is also fallen. However, the ancient Fathers emphasize that the divine image in man has not been totally corrupted or obliterated. Human nature remains inherently good after the Fall; mankind is not totally depraved. People are still capable of doing good, although bondage to death and the influences of the devil can dull their perception of what is good and lead them into all kinds of evil.’

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Why are Matthew’s and Luke’s birth narratives so different?

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The most celebrated critical commentary on the birth narratives is that of Raymond Brown – The Birth of the Messiah.

In discussing the birth narratives as history, Brown cites two sets of problems:

1. The problem of corroborating witnesses

Regarding the main body of the Gospel narratives, there is no shortage of witnesses whose reminiscences could be harvested.  And there was a tradition that had been passed down from this first witnesses.  See Acts 1:22; 1 Cor 15:3 etc.…

Deification

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‘Deification’ (Gk. ‘theosis‘) is a term widely used in Eastern Orthodox theology for the process by which God’s grace transforms believers into his likeness.  It involves belief that grace reverses the effects of the Fall, and confers on the believer the ‘divine’ attributes of incorruptibility and immortality.  But

‘its central tenet is that God through the Incarnation of his Son has called men to share the Divine life in the Son.’ (Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, art.

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Orthodox worship

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According to legend, in 987 Prince Vladimir of Kiev sent emissaries to different countries of the world to learn about the religion and worship of each.  The Muslims were found to be ‘disgraceful’ and the Western Christians without ‘glory’.  Of Constantinople, at the cathedral church of Hagia Sophia, they reported:

‘We knew not whether we were in heaven or on earth. For on earth there is no such splendor or such beauty, and we are at a loss how to describe it.

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Orthodox writers on transcendence, mystery, paradox

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From Christian History Magazine, Issue 54 – Eastern Orthodoxy

The transcendence of God

‘God cannot be grasped by the mind. If he could be grasped, he would not be God.’

—Evagrius of Pontus (d. 399)

‘One day some of the brethren came to see Abba Antony, and among them was Abba Joseph. Wishing to test them, the old man mentioned a text from Scripture, and starting with the youngest, he asked them what it meant.…

Do we meet in a temple or tent? – a view from the East

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Vladimir Berzonsky, in his contribution to ‘Three Views on Eastern Orthodoxy and Evangelicalism‘ sets out in a striking way a characteristic feature of Orthodox worship, and how this contrasts with (what he understands to be) the Evangelical view.

‘When the Orthodox Christians come together to experience the joy of Eucharist’, Berzonsky explains,

‘only the best will do. Church as building becomes a temple, set apart to be made holy—prelude and paradigm of the world become church.

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2 Peter 1:20 – ‘No prophecy of scripture ever comes about by the prophet’s own imagination.’

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2 Peter 1:20 ‘No prophecy of scripture ever comes about by the prophet’s own imagination.’

This passage may mean,

(a) no prophecy is to be understood by private interpretation; i.e. it must be interpreted as the Church understands it, or as the Holy Spirit illuminates it.  This would be consistent with the fact that the false teachers certainly did misinterpret Scripture (2 Pet 2:1; 3:16).

According to Bauckham, most commentators and translations adopt this interpretation. …